Counterpart Cockblocking
by strawberryTala
Summary: Rin and Yugo were tired, had missed each other terribly and really just wanted to catch up and enjoy some privacy together. Too bad that was too much to ask for.


Soul damage, that was the basic gist of the explanation they were given as to why they were stuck in one body. The whole forcefully fusing into one body, almost dissapearing from existence and parts of themselves fighting Zarc had put too much strain on them, and they needed time to recover. The boys were in the same boat, with the whole being overcome by a near devil incarnate and almost destroyed as a result thing.

She was a bit miffed at first, but decided quickly enough she didn't dislike the others. Yuzu was nice and tried to be thoughtful. She felt a weird comraderie with Ruri, with the whole getting kidnapped thing. And Serena was a bit tight, but fun in her own way sometimes.

At first she found it unfair that Zarc and Ray got their own bodies when they were stuck being a walking invisible audience. But then they both fell asleep standing up after they finished explaining and didn't wake up for three days, and she took that back.

But they had promised to fix it, and if they tried it now all of them would either dissapear or be damaged for life.

So they had to wait. Even if it would be a bit weird living like this for a while, the knowledge that it was temporary made it easier. She could deal with it, it may even be fun.

Oh, how wrong she was.

She and Yugo had watched as everyone took their turns taking control from the side. Yuya running to his parents and his huge friend Gongenzaka, openly crying and Yuzu being grabbed up by her aggresively sobbing dad only to start crying herself when she tried to scold him.

Ruri and Yuto nearly bowled over the guy they called Shun, crashing in a heap on the floor, crying. Serena had a few short conversations here and there, while Yuri had punched the red-haired guy in the stomach and Rin was pretty sure he'd also started crying at some point while yelling at him. It was an odd sight.

They had no one here to talk to except each other, so they floated a little ways away from the group and talked, Yugo going a mile a minute talking about everything that had happened while she'd been gone. She watched with a smile as his expression quickly changed as he talked, gesturing wildly with his hands and eyes shining when he looked at her. It made her feel warm inside.

It wasn't perfect though, as Rin was quite honestly impatient to actually touch him again. Yugo kept pawing uselessly at her raised hand, but was only met with very slight obstruction before it phased right through. She just barely felt where he was touching, but there was no sensation or warmth. She would try it herself if the sight of her hands going right through him didn't depress her a little. Rin let him keep going though, if it made him happy. She didn't want to disturb the others either.

But finally, they got to take over, and Rin had barely finished shaking off the disoriented feeling before she hastily turned to where Yugo was now supposed to be. He was dazedly looking at his fingers, but it was definitely him and Rin sent a mental thank you to whoever made their control switching also make their features change. A wide smile overtook her features as he finally looked up at her at hearing her footsteps. A big grin broke out over his face and he ran towards her with his arms thrown open, eyes sparkling.

"Riiiiin!"

"Yugo!" she yelled back, arms held out as he launched himself at her. She caught him with a laugh, letting his feet dangle above ground for a little before setting him back on his feet and holding him close.

Because it was _Yugo_ , whom she had missed so, so much and he was _here_ and he was _safe,_ back in her arms. Yugo snuggled into her shoulder, arms tight enough around her to almost hurt, but she welcomed it openly and held him just as tight, burying her face in his blue hair.

"Rin, Rin, it's Rin, it's really Rin," Yugo said, voice low and a little muffled, but the pure joy and relief was impossible to miss and it made her tighten her grip for a second. His words made her giddy, but also reminded her of their terrible first reunion. But she pushed those thoughts back, they could be dealt with later. Right now Yugo was more important.

"You okay?" Yugo asked softly as Rin leaned her weight against him.

"Better than okay. You?" she said quietly.

"Same here," he said, laughing against her shoulder.

She hummed in response, nosing through his hair and swaying back and forth in place. Adjusting her grip so she could hold him more comfortably and as close as was humanly possible, she let the chill of the tension and anxiety that had built up over the weeks seep out of her and soaked up Yugo's wamth and smell in it's place.

She was so filled with joy and contentment, she didn't notice the other girls getting restless.

They parted just slightly and Rin touched their foreheads together, Yugo meeting her halfway with a smile. But it was as they just stood in place, breathing in sync, that she twitched to a still and was forcefully dragged away from being in control.

Yuzu and Yuya jumped away a good three feet away from each other, both blushing terribly and pointedly not looking in the others direction.

" _Hey! What the hell?!"_ Yugo yelled, now transparent and floating behind Yuya.

" _Seriously, what are you two doing?! You all had your turns, let us have ours!"_ Rin frowned darkly where she hovered behind Yuzu as the others materialised as well. She'd been patient waiting for her turn to talk to Yugo again and they had the nerve to cut it off?

If looks could kill, Rin was pretty sure she'd be the sole person in their body by now, even as the other girls looked sheepishly at her.

"S-sorry! Just, you surprised us, is all," Yuya said, hands held up and looking back and forth at them, sounding genuinely apologetic. It didn't do much to soothe her anger.

"Yeah, I didn't actually think you would, hug like that..." Yuzu also sounded sorry, but her words confused Rin, and a quick glance at Yugo told her he felt the same.

" _Why wouldn't I?"_ she asked.

" _Yeah, why wouldn't we?"_ Yugo asked, floating over to hover next to Rin, looking confused.

" _I mean,"_ Ruri said, smiling and scratching her cheek nervously. _"That's usually something couples do, right?"_ the others nodded along. _"Friends usually aren't that close."_

Rin blinked, until it finally clicked and she realised, they didn't know.

" _But we ARE a couple."_

Her words were met with shocked silence, everyone staring wide-eyed at her and Yugo, who was smiling and happily nodding at her words. She even saw more than a few gaping mouths.

" _...You are?"_ Serena asks, sounding like the concept was alien to her. It probably was, now that she thought about it.

"H-how, since when?" Yuzu asked, sounding disbelieving.

" _A while back now,"_ Yugo answered, grinning in that stupidly happy and cute way.

Rin raised an eyebrow at the resulting silence. _"What?"_

"Oh! It's not a problem, really! I'm just, surprised," Yuya said, laughing, but it sounded a bit high in pitch.

"Y-yeah, I didn't really expect that," Yuzu said, sounding bewildered. "I mean, I figured Yugo liked you but I didn't really think you two were... that far along." She almost started mumbling at the end of her sentence.

Rin huffed, unimpressed. _"Judging by all of your reactions, I guess handholding is a big hurdle as well."_

She said it mostly as a joke, but the shifty eyes and pink faces she got in return from most of them told her all she needed.

" _Oh my god, you absolute babies,"_ she sighed, covering her face behind her hand.

" _It's not an everyday thing to do between most people,"_ Yuto muttered, arms crossed and not looking at anyone.

" _But it's convenient,"_ Yugo said, looking confused.

" _How is holding hands convenient?"_ Serena asked, sounding both puzzled and curious.

He smiled. _"So you don't lose each other in a crowd!"_ Yugo said, matter of factly with his hands on his hips.

" _And if one is an excitable dork who can't stay still for five minutes without running off to look at something, it works as a glorified leash,"_ Rin said, face kept purposefully blank.

" _Hey!"_ Yugo said, looking offended. _"I'm not that bad!"_

" _Say that to the multiple times I've nearly had a heart attack when I turn back around after looking away for two minutes and you're nowhere in sight in a busy and shady market," s_ he said, expression deadpan.

Yugo pouted at her, finally making her compousure crack and let out a giggle, her lips pulled into an amused smile, making him look sullenly at her. She vaguely noticed the others had grown quiet.

" _Besides,"_ he said, huffing, changing the topic and crossing his arms. _"it's nice holding hands."_

" _It is,"_ she said, thoughtful.

"Okay, got it," Yuya said, smiling nervously. "Maybe we should, talk about this later. So no one gets uncomfortable."

"Right! Sounds good, let's do that," Yuzu said and quickly nodded. "We can all kinda feel what the one in control feels, and that isn't exactly something we're used to."

Ok fine, she can see how that could be weird.

Rin sighed irritably. Discussing what she could and couldn't do with her own boyfriend wasn't a conversation she wanted to have. But this would be tricky for all of them, she had to respect boundaries here, no matter how frustrated it made her. She could deal with not being overly touchy-feely with Yugo for a while.

...Probably.

Yugo looked conflicted, looking at the others before letting out a put-off huff. _"Fiiine."_

" _Sure. Then how about we have you two return control to us and let us be?"_ she said, pointing at Yuya and Yuzu, who twitched at having her attention on them.

She didn't get an answer however, as they just stood around like floundering chickens, until they were called by Reiji.

"A-anyway, we'll let you two catch up properly later, ok? When everything here is dealt with. Promise," Yuzu said, smiling nervously up at a scowling Rin.

" _...Fine."_

Yugo didn't look any happier than Rin felt, but he mumbled a 'sure' anyway.

* * *

The time they got together 'officially' was something both Rin and Yugo remembered, for more than one reason. They had just finished putting the last touches on their D-Wheel, and with bated breath, started it up. Hoping it wouldn't splutter and die like it had so many other times before.

But as the engine came to life and stayed on, no odd sounds coming from it and everything lighting up properly, they were overcome with excitement and relief and sheer joy. Rin had been nearly vibrating where she stood with emotion while Yugo was jumping up and down, excitedly shouting 'It works! It works!' and if she was seeing it and _of course_ she did, hadn't taken her eyes of it once.

Yugo had thrown his arms around her and she had teared her gaze away from the D-Wheel to hug him back, both of them smiling so wide their cheeks hurt.

Then he had kissed her, just like that.

It wasn't a long one, just a peck on the lips. And it clearly hadn't been planned, Yugo giving a start when he realised what he'd done and moving away, stuttering out a nervous 'sorry', face pink.

Rin had stood dumbfounded for about five seconds before grabbing Yugo's jacket and bringing their lips together again for a proper kiss. She had ended up pushing him up against the wall not long after, their D-Wheel forgotten.

And as Rin had realised with some embarrassment, not a whole lot changed after. They still hugged, they still cuddled, still leaned on each other all the time, just that now it was with the knowledge that they were together. Hand holding was more common and lot's of kisses were also soon included, which was very, very nice.

They didn't tell the adults, but Rin was pretty sure they either suspected even before she and Yugo got together, or already knew. They only didn't want the adults to know so they'd be forced to sleep in separate rooms, even if they didn't do anything beyond kissing. It was just nice to sleep in the same bed.

Not to say they had _never_ gone further, even if it was only once. That had happened on their cot in the garage. She bad almost been convinced Yugo wouldn't ever lose the bright red flush his face had been coloured in from the moment she'd climbed on top of him. It had only deepened when their bodies pressed close against each other, as she left marks on his neck and moved her hand downwards, pulling such sweet, sweet sounds from him...

Ah, memories.

After spending so long being so close to each other, it was natural to continue being close, and after being forcefully separated they wanted to be closer than before.

If only they would actually be allowed to in peace.

* * *

Yugo stretched, standing in the corridor outside the You Show action duel arena. The little kids was currently dueling against Yuzu's dad and he was supposed to be watching, but...

He glanced over his shoulder. Rin was leaning against the wall behind him, arms crossed and staring off into space with a frown. They had just taken over from Yuri and Serena, who had finished their own duels. It was his and Rin's turn to be in control and next up to duel after the kids. But that would be a while still, so for now they were alone.

The best part? The other guys had retreated to their soul rooms to rest, so he was the only one in this body currently here. Sure, they could still kinda tell what was going on, but it wasn't at quite the same extent as when they were out and about.

The question was if it was the same for Rin...

He half-skipped backwards to lean against the wall next to her.

"Hey Rin, Whatcha thinking about?"

She startled, not realising he was there, but her frown melted away into a smile when she realised it was just him.

"Not much. Just trying to gather my thoughts." She rolled her shoulders. "It always feels a little weird taking control when you haven't done it in a while."

She fell back to the wall with a huff and turned to look at him, a soft smile on her face that made his heart skip. "So, how have you been doing?"

"Good, honestly." He looked up at the ceiling in thought. "Having nice adults around is weird though, especially when they feed you so much. And it's a trial getting dressed in the morning, none of us want to wear what anyone else wants." He said, making Rin let out a laugh.

It was true too. It had gotten to the point that they alternated between which one got to choose what they would wear each day. Their features may change as they switched control, but the clothes on their body didn't. Today was Yuya's turn, though he usually put on the usual uniform he always wore. Yugo always pulled the sleeves on though, which Yuri also did. When he'd asked why, since Yuri seemed like he had a thing for capes, he'd simply gotten a muttered 'it's cold otherwise' in response.

"I kinda recognise that." Rin said, laughter in her voice and wow had he missed hearing that. "We don't have it nearly as bad I think, but there's times when we argue about clothing, which is something I never expected to deal with."

Yugo grinned, even as he leaned to the side to bump against Rin's shoulder with his own.

"Sooo, what's the 'situation' up there with you?" He asked, trying to sound nonchalant, scruffing his shoe against the floor.

Rin raised a questioning eyebrow. "'Situation'?"

"Yeah, you know, with the others. Like are you 'alone'? 'Cause I am, just for the record. The others have gone to their rooms to rest." He tried to sound casual even as nerves made him heat up a little.

Gold eyes lit up in realisation and a teasing smile formed soon after, making his stomach do flip flops.

"Hmm." Rin hummed, sounding aloof. "Why do you want to know?" She asked, glancing at him from the corner of her eye with an amused tilt to her mouth.

"W-well, it's not everyday we have some privacy..." He said, tugging at his shirt nervously.

"And what could we do in private that we can't do with company?" Rin asked, as composed as always, casually taking hold of his free hand that rested against the wall behind them.

"You, you know like," He felt his face grow warm. "k-kissing, and stuff." 'Stuff' that really wasn't proper to do in a public hallway, but they wouldn't go that far!

Rin's teasing smile grew, leaning in close and pressing their shoulders together. "What, you want a kiss, Yugo?"

Yugo inwardly cursed Rin's calm and love of teasing him. At least she wasn't playing completely dumb like other times...

"Maybe." He looked away, chin tilted up.

"'Maybe' isn't a yes. It's 'yes' or 'no'." She poked his cheek, making him glance sourly at her.

He looked down at the floor, to the glass window and then down to their linked hands. "...yes," he mumbled, blushing.

"Yes, what?"

He glared sullenly at her, but Rin only smiled wider. "Really?"

"I won't know what you want if you don't tell me clearly," she said, grinning.

Yugo grumbled, turning to her, feeling peeved and embarrassed at the same time. "Yes, I want a kiss!" he said loudly, his free hand quickly shooting up to cover his mouth, embarrassment making his blushing increase.

Rin chuckled, squeezing his hand. "Oh, so that's what you wanted? Just tell me that earlier." Her voice sounded overly exasperated, but her eyes had an amused glint in them.

Yugo scowled at her, only to jump in surprise when she leaned forward to press her lips against his.

 _'Finally,'_

His shoulders relaxed as he closed his eyes and kissed back. He took a step closer and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, letting out a small whimper as Rin pulled him flush against her, her own arms going around his middle.

Their first proper kiss since being reunited taking place in a hallway of a duel school while body sharing wasn't ideal, but he's okay with that if they could kiss when they wanted to again. Just being able to touch and hug her again was good enough.

" _Hold it hold it hold it!"_

" _Stop! Stop!"_

He may have spoken too soon as frantic screaming soon began in his head, making him roughly pull back from Rin and clutch his head.

"God that's loud." He looked up and saw Rin in a similiar position, frowning. "What's the deal, all of a sudden?"

" _What's the deal?! That's our question, what are you two doing?!"_ Yuzu screeches, as she and the rest come out, faces varying shades of red. Yuya and Yuzu looked the worst off, but not by much. Yuto and Ruri seemed unable to meet anyones eyes and Serena looked ready to punch someone even with how red in the face she was. Yuri looked like a combination of flustered and irritated.

"Kissing?" Rin says, looking confused as she ran a hand through her hair. "You know, a thing couples do?"

"My ears are ringing..." he moaned, rubbing them gingerly. "And you guys tell me I overreact too much to things."

" _This is different! Why are you two kissing?"_ Yuya says, waving his hands around.

"Because we wanted to? It's been a while you know..." he said, blinking in confusion at them.

"I am not having this conversation again," Rin muttered, looking annoyed. "Do you need a reason to kiss and hug other than because you like it?"

Ruri fidgets when she answers Rin's question. _"Well, no..."_

" _K-kissing is still a bit much! It's our bodies too you know?_

"I guess..." he mutters, brow furrowed.

" _So you know, maybe not that? Until we split up."_ Yuya says, rubbing the back of his head.

That made him jolt. "Huh?!"

"You can't be serious," Rin says, raising an eyebrow at them and placing her hands on her hips.

" _Please? It's really weird for us."_ Ruri says, looking pleadingly at them and clasping her hands together in front of her face.

" _Really, really weird."_ Serena mutters, arms crossed.

" _Only that much! Promise!"_ Yuzu says.

He looks over to meet Rin's eyes, who looked as displeased as he felt. He didn't want to cross off kissing Rin for the whole time they shared a body, he didn't know how long they had to stay like this and he had really, really missed her. What he really wanted to do was wrap himself around her in a hug and stay like that until the longing to touch her and be with her lessened.

But if the others were so uncomfortable it wouldn't feel very nice. Maybe he could deal without some things for a while, if the others were content. Plus he really didn't want the screaming so suddenly in his head again...

Yugo deflated in resignation as he saw Rin give in as well.

"Fine," they both sighed.

The others letting out big breaths of relief made him feel a little better about it. Only for a little longer, he kept telling himself, even as a feeling of annoyance lingered.

He still reached over to grab hold of Rin's hand, who gripped back. It helped a little.

* * *

"So, what's with your new hobby?" Rin asked absently, opening the cupboards in the Sakaki kitchen. Where's the damn cake molds in this place?

"What hobby?" Yugo asked, looking up from mixing batter in a big bowl. He'd somehow gotten flour on his face again.

"Baking." she said, holding up a form with a little hatch on the side. "This okay?"

He nodded, smiling. "Yeah! That's the one. You can put it on the counter, I'm almost done," he turned back to the bowl, picking up a smaller one and pouring the melted butter inside it in the batter.

Rin walked up behind him, wrapped her arms around his waist and placed her chin on his shoulder. "You never answered my first question, what's with the want to bake?"

"Nothing really, I flipped through Yoko's cookbook and wanted to try making some stuff. Yuya likes to do it alot too apparently, so she let me use the kitchen if I wanted."

"Hmm, I see. It looks good so far, I'll give you that."

"Hehe, thanks!" he said, smiling happily, making her smile as well. "But is it that surprising?" he asked, tilting his head curiously.

"A little, but that's not the part I was most thrown off by..." she trailed off, glancing down at the light blue apron Yugo was wearing. When she had come over to hang out, she hadn't expected him to round the corner wearing an apron, sleeves of his dark blue sweater rolled up and with flour in his hair, grinning bright enough to rival the sun. Needless to say she nearly choked on empty air.

"What was it?" he asked, looking at her.

"Nevermind," she said offhandedly, lifting a hand to rub off the flour on his cheek with her sleeve.

"Hey, stop that!" he said laughing, leaning away from her. "I need to pour it in the form now."

She stepped back and leaned against the dinner table to watch. Yugo smeared the sides and bottom of the mold with butter and breadcrumbs, then taking the bowl and pouring the batter inside. Scraping out the rest with a rubber spatula before putting down the bowl, he finally put it in the oven and set a timer.

"How long until it's done?" she asked as Yugo backed up to lean against the table next to her, throwing the apron on top of the surface. She spent a second mourning it's departure.

"About 30 minutes," he said, before pouting a little. "This is the boring part."

She let out a grunt as they fell in a comfortable silence. Rin stared at the cake in the oven, lost in thoughts. She and the other girls had squabbled this morning and had yet to actually talk it through, barely a word between them even after she took over control from Ruri. She didn't even remember what it had been about anymore, probably something insignificant, but enough to spark off built up tension that had been left stimming for too long. She and Yugo had them too sometimes and she _knew_ the best way is to leave it be and let everyone involved cool off and then talk it through. But swallowing her pride wasn't something Rin was good at and she somehow felt less inclined to do so now.

It was pretty terrible, in hindsight. She really should apologise, or at least breach the subject first, but if the others hadn't done so yet maybe they were still mad...

She was so absorbed in her own thoughts she didn't notice the pair of hands reaching for her, until they had dug into her sides and started _tickling her._

"GYAahahaha! W-ait Yugo w-what are you doo-oing?!" she screeched, laughing and trying to squirm away, weakly smacking at his arms.

"There's nowhere to run!" Yugo laughs, grinning. "You can only submit! Submit to the tickles and I'll release you!"

"Ok, ok! I ssurre- nder, ju-uust s-s-stoooop!" she laughed slash screamed, tears running down her face, stomach and cheeks hurting.

His fingers finally stopped attacking her sides. He wrapped his arms around her waist as she slumped against him, gasping for breath.

"I will, actually smack you, if you pull that again," she gasped against his shoulder.

"Hehe, you say that every time," he giggled against her shoulder. "You had such a frowny look on your face, I thought you needed a laugh."

Rin looked up, breathing finally back in order. Yugo only grinned at her, expression innocent and genuine and impossible to stay mad at for long.

She sighed loudly, reaching up and pinching his cheek, not enough to hurt or even sting, but enough to make the area between her fingers turn red. "There's better ways to do that, you know," she said, mouth twitching into a half-formed smile. "But, thanks. It's just some stuff I need to deal with, don't worry."

"Wanna talk about it?" he asked, words slightly slurred with his cheek still held between her thumb and forefinger.

"Nah, I'll sort it out." She let go of his cheek and he rubs a hand against it, pouting slightly. She gives his other cheek a peck. "But thanks for offering."

He laughed, both cheeks now a matching red. "No problem!"

Rin smiled sweetly, hands grabbing onto his shoulders, fingers rubbing light circles in the soft fabric and leaned just a little closer. Yugo glanced shyly between her hands and her face, fidgeting. "Um, Rin?"

"Now," she says, smile turning sly, "time for payback."

"Huh?"

Faster than Yugo could object, she shoved her hands up under his shirt, placing her cold hands on his bare back.

"GYYYAAAAAHHHH!"

"Mmm, nice and warm," she hummed cheerily, grip rock solid as Yugo was trying to both get away from her arms and lean away from her chilly hands, only managing to lean into her. "You make such a good heater, Yugo."

"That doesn't make me happy at all!" he squeals, trying to forcefully move her arms off him, but she simply moved her hands to another spot and he twisted in discomfort again. "You're the worst!"

She simply let out a giggle, enjoying the way he unintentionally pressed up against her, forcing her to lean backwards a little to keep her balance. She moved one hand up closer to his neck, making him let out a high pitched squeak.

"Uuuh! Rin! I get it already, so can you please- ah!" Yugo let out a surprised cry as Rin bit into his pretty neck, going still in her arms.

She gave the spot a tiny lick, hugging him closer and continued to nibble at his neck as Yugo trembled, letting out little whimpers. "H-hey..."

She pulls back just a little to look him in the eye. "You good?"

He swallowed hard, but nodded jerkily, wrapping his arms around her neck. "Y-yeah, it's fine, you can continue..." His cute, embarrassed smile matched with the bright red flush on his cheeks made her stomach flutter like crazy.

Pushing him back into the table, she continued to nip gently at the soft, pale skin, interspersing her nibbles with harder bites, then kissing those same spots. Yugo let's out a moan, shuddering as her hands moved up and down his bare back.

"R-rin," he stutters as she continues to kiss and lick at his neck, moving to nip at his red ear tip. She blew into his ear, making him let out another shudder, his hands gripping her shirt tightly. "Yugo..." she breathed into his ear, making him whine again.

" _WaitwaitwaitwaitWAIT!"_

" _OOOKAAAAY I can't take any more of this, what the hell are you two doing?!"_

Rin's widened eyes met Yugo's as their counterparts started loudly shouting their objections.

Rin looked up as the others appeared and met their disbelieving and bewildered gazes, hands still up Yugo's shirt, his arms around her neck, both their faces flushed, Yugo's considerably more so.

" _This is not 'only baking'!_ Yuya shouts, followed by Yuzu.

" _We agreed on not being overly touchy, didn't we?!"_

"Oops," she said, genuinely, smiling apologetically "kinda forgot in the moment. I didn't leave any marks though." Probably. Maybe some teeth marks, but she didn't bite _that_ hard, so there shouldn't be any.

" _Oh my god,"_ Yuto groans into his hands.

Rin looked down at Yugo, who was hiding his face behind his hands and curled into her shoulder, his ears a bright red. She patted his head. "You alright down there?"

He groaned. "I feel walked in on. You guys suck, all of you, equally."

"I'd like to think I suck somewhat better than these wimps," she muttered, not thinking anyone would hear her. She was quickly proven wrong as the others choked and Yuri let out a surprised burst of laughter, quickly muffled with his hand.

" _Not the time..."_ Ruri mumbled as Serena was fiercely holding back laughter next to her, hand tight over her mouth and Yuri still openly snickering. Yuzu, Yuya and Yuto was trying to steer the conversation back to 'what-Rin-and-Yugo-couldn't-do-during-alone-time'.

The chaos was interrupted by the sound of a ding. Eight pair of eyes turned to the oven, where the end result of their baking session today stood finished inside.

"Oh! Time to take it out." Rin removed her arms as Yugo moved to put on kitchen mittens and took the cake out. She hadn't even noticed the smell coming from it, but it made her mouth water.

"So, truce for cake?" she said, glancing at the others.

Her response was either excited or reluctant agreement. Sweets was a powerful distraction.

* * *

"Hey Rin! Where do I put this?"

She turned to him from where she was changing the bed sheets on Yuzu's bed. She squinted at the box in his arms, shaking a pillow at the same time. "Does it fit in the closet?"

He looked over to said door set in the wall. He fumbled with the door to open it and peered at the floor, already occupied by two other boxes, one about the same size and one smaller, but still room for one more. "Yep."

"Just put it in there. I'll go through it later." She turned back to the bed, putting the pillow back and starting to put the comforter in place.

He picked up the spare blanket on the floor and started folding it, glancing around the room.

"How do you get so much stuff anyway?" he asked, looking at the desk filled with kick knacks and the walls covered in pictures. What did Yuzu even use it for?

"No idea." Rin said, giving the bed a last pat before standing up straight straight and turning to him, hands on her hips. "At least none of us have as much to move over."

He snickered. "Yeah, a box for each of us to bring from City. Yuto had even less than me though, but Yuri didn't have much either," he said, glancing up to the ceiling. It was smooth and white and free of cracks, like Yuya's room. It would take some getting used to.

"Same here," Rin stretched. "I'll leave my stuff in the box for now. Shuzo is looking for a new place, but it's no hurry yet. It isn't looking like we'll need our own beds for a while."

Yugo was about to answer, but a yawn interrupted him. They'd been going to every dimension and back today to pick up any items they wanted to bring to their new home. The day had been spent switching control between the ones who needed to pick up their stuff and when they ran into people they knew. He'd gotten a chance to talk with Edo again, which was fun, and had promised to come visit again.

But the end result was they they were all exhausted. Switching so many times got tiring and they already got more exhausted than usual. The others had retired to their soul rooms to sleep and Yugo really wanted to follow suit, but...

"You gonna use that or keep holding on to it?" Rin asks, having walked to the window without him noticing and closing the curtains.

He blinked in confusion, until Rin nodded down to his arms and he realised he was still holding the blanket he'd done a terrible folding job of.

"Oh!" he held it out to her. "Sorry, completely forgot about it."

Rin took it with an amused smile, until a yawn broke through it.

He glanced at the clock. It was pretty late already. "Maybe I should head back..."

Rin frowned, also looking at the clock, dropping her hand from where it had covered her mouth. She was silent for a minute, until she grabbed his hand.

"Sleep here? Please?" she asked, voice soft.

He perked up, hopeful. "Can I?"

"Of course." She smiled. "You okay with sharing a bed?"

He nodded happily. "Yeah! Why wouldn't I be?"

"I only asked to be sure, since it's, been a while and all," she said, rubbing the back of her head.

Yugo frowned. "It's because it's been a while I want to sleep together," he said firmly, not noticing Rin almost choking on her own saliva. "Don't say stupid things."

She cleared her throat. "Right, my bad. Hop in, I changed the sheets for a reason," she said, waving in the direction of the bed while going to put the blanket down on the desk chair.

He smiled happily and turned to the bed. He had pulled back the covers and thrown them to the end of the bed, when her words sank in and he felt his ears heat up. "Rin, you don't actually mean you want to..."

She waved away his words quickly, cheeks pink. "Not that! That can wait until we've got our own bodies," now his cheeks warmed, "I meant I wanted fresh ones for when we went to sleep."

He blinked. "You planned this?"

She coughed, looking away. "Maybe. Okay not really, but when we were the ones to get here, I kinda hoped," she said, looking just a little embarrassed. He snickered, making her expression sour at his amusement.

"Oh, I should tell Yoko I'm staying here tonight," he said, picking up the duel disk they shared and sending her a quick message. He put it back on the desk he had left it on, not bothering to wait for a reply.

"Anyway uh, you got any pyjamas or softer pants I can borrow?" he asked, tugging at the ones he was currently wearing. "They're not the most comfortable to sleep in." Normally he'd just remove them and sleep in his shirt and underwear, but he figured that wasn't something the others would appreciate waking up to. If they weren't missing any clothes it'd be fine right?

"Oh, right, I want a pair too..." she trailed off and walked over to the drawer, opened the middle one and rummaged around in it. She threw a pair of dark blue pyjama pants and a light blue shirt to him, holding a pair for herself, green pants and pink shirt. "They're both mine, don't worry about that."

"Thanks!" he said, fumbling with his pants and pulled them off, along with his socks, only barely loosing his balance twice. Blue eyes glanced around the room, before he shrugged and tossed the clothing to the ground.

He was about to pull on the soft pants, when he saw out of the corner of his eye that Rin hadn't moved, just standing there and staring at him.

"You gonna change or what...?" he asked, face scrunched up in embarrassment. He could never handle Rin silently staring at him when he was in any state of undress.

She snapped out of her daze, shaking her head. "Sorry," she mumbled, removing her own clothes and pulling on her pyjamas, making him look away quickly.

He pulled on his own and sat down on the bed, crawling to the side closest to the wall and flopping down on the mattress, burying his face in the soft pillow and letting out a pleased groan.

Rin laughed at his limp form as she sat down on the edge of the bed. "That nice to finally lie down?"

His response was a muffled murmur that probably had a 'yeah' somewhere in there. The mattress dipped beside him as Rin laid down beside him, pulling the covers over them both. He lifted his head from the world of white and turned on his side to face her.

Rin had turned off the ceiling lamp, but leaving the smaller one on the bedside table on, the light from it making her hair look like it was glowing at the edges. Her head was propped up on her hand, gold eyes soft as she looked down at him, small smile on her lips.

Yugo felt his face getting warm. He had never forgotten, obviously, but right now he was starkly reminded that Rin was really, really pretty. That she wanted to be _with_ him still filled him with a storm of butterflies and giddy joy if he thought too hard about it.

He'd been so lost in thought staring at her, he didn't notice when her free hand moved to his face and pushed away some blond hair from his face, tucking it behind his ear. He twitched in surprise at the feeling of her cool fingers as they brushed against his skin.

"You're really beautiful."

Yugo blinks, brain a little slow with sleepiness and the mellow atmoshpere. Then the words registered as having come from Rin and being directed at _him_ and instantly his face felt like it had caught on fire.

He stuttered out half-formed words, hiding his blushing face behind his hands. "Riiin!" he whined, curling up.

"What? It's true," she said, giggling.

"It's not! I'm definitely not!" he shot back, looking back up at her. She was grinning at his suffering.

"You deeefinitely are. Nothing you say can convince me otherwise," she said with an amused voice, poking at his forehead.

He pouted at her. "You're prettier..." he mumbled, staring into the pillow again, missing how Rin's eyes widened a little, before smiling again.

The bed shifted, Yugo looking up and going still as Rin leaned in. She was so close, breath brushing against his warm face. Just as she started tilting her head and their lips was just about to brush against each other, a big yawn suddenly broke out of him. He shifted back and covered his mouth, frowning. Of all times for sleep to interrupt... "Um, sorry."

Rin blinked, surprised, before laughing and pressing a kiss against his flushed cheek. "Sleep?" she asked, sounding tired herself.

"Sleep," he replied, rubbing one eye as they were fighting to stay open.

Rin lied down properly, wrapping an arm around his waist and pulled him closer. He snuggled closer, burying his face in her collarbone as she pressed a kiss to his head.

He drew in a deep breath and let it out, going limp and closing his eyes. He fell asleep listening to her breathing and heartbeat, small smiles on both of their faces.

* * *

Yugo woke up slowly, feeling warm and comfortable. When he shifted slightly, he became aware of the arm around his waist and the warm body behind him, breathing ruffling his hair. Smiling, he snuggled back into the bed, intending to sleep for a while longer.

He was about to, until he absently noticed Rin mumbling behind him and shifting. He felt her nuzzle into his hair, pressing a small kiss to the back of his neck, making him giggle at the ticklish feeling. Her arm around his waist tightened. "Morning."

"Good morning. Slept well?"

"Mhmm," she mumbled. Rin always took a while to wake up and stop walking around half-asleep if left alone. He turned around in her grip to look at her, smiling. She smiled sleepily back, lifting a hand to rub at her eyes and yawn. "You?"

"Yup."

"That's good," she said, sounding a bit more awake now. As she looked him in the eye again, he noticed her eyes looked a little hazy as she raised a hand to brush away some hair from his face, like the night before.

 _'Oh, right,"_ he thought as Rin leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead, then his brow, making him furrow them. Rin was so touchy when sleepy. Thinking about the many times he'd woken up to her pressing kisses against his skin was embarrassing.

He looked up and met her eyes, soft and molten gold in colour. She leaned closer, tilting her head and eyes lidded, their breath mingling. Closing his eyes, he leaned up to meet her halfway as they pressed their lips together.

It was light and gentle, their lips brushing softly against each other in numerous small kisses. Rin shifted to lean over him and placed her hand on his other side to hold her up, and pushed down just a little more, making a shiver run up his spine. Yugo raised a hand to lightly hold onto her shoulder, fingers curling in the fabric of her shirt. His free hand moved up to grab hers, their fingers intertwining against the sheets.

For a while they just laid there, sharing gentle kisses, going from the lips, to the corner of the mouth, to their cheeks and back again. Small noises and pleased sighs filled the room and the tiny distance between them. It was warm under the covers, their bodies close but not quite touching, sometimes brushing against the other as they shifted, making the spots where they do touch heat up. His toes curled as the kiss deepened just a little more, his hand going up to Rin's hair and treading his fingers through it, making her sigh against his lips.

His lips was tingling pleasantly when they parted to catch their breath. Yugo knew he was a blushing mess, but he had no way to hide it. It was embarrassing getting this worked up over some light kissing, but it had been so long since they had done _anything_. And he hadn't gotten that used to this to begin with.

Rin pressed a kiss to his temple before looking at him again. She brushed their lips together, but didn't press them together.

"I missed you so much," she murmured quietly, closing her eyes and touching their foreheads together. Yugo smiled and wrapped his arms around her neck. "I missed you too," he said, voice soft. He'd missed being this close with her, he had almost forgotten how nice it was...

He was about to say something else, until his head was overcome with panic and surprise and yelling he couldn't tell words apart. He was so distracted he didn't notice how Rin stiffened and he suddenly had an arm pushing hard at him and knee right in the stomach.

"Ooff!" he cried out, curling up on his side as Rin shot up and away, followed by a loud thud and swearing. He held his aching stomach, cursing under his breath. "Ow ow, shit, what are you doing suddenly, Rin?"

He looked up, only to find the bed empty except for him and a stray leg propped up over the edge. Sitting up properly, he looked down at the floor, only to blink in confusion. "Serena?"

Because that dark blue hair was definitely her, not the light green that Rin had. She was still swearing silently and her face was bright pink in colour as she laid in a heap on the floor.

" _What are you two doing?!"_ Yuzu suddenly yells, popping out beside her and looking at him like he was crazy.

Suddenly the space around the bed was crowded and Yugo felt like he was being accused of somethng terrible, with how they were staring at him. Rin appeared soon after, looking very confused and bewildered.

"Um, what?"

"Don't 'what' me," Serena growled from the floor, sitting up. "What were you two planning to do just now?!"

" _And why are you sleeping in the same bed?!"_ Yuto said, voice a little high in pitch.

Yugo and Rin blinked in tandem, glancing at each other. "Because we wanted to?"

The others seemed to flounder at his flat response, and Yugo got a serious sense of deja vu.

"Anyway Serena, why did you kick me? That really hurt, you know!" He rubbed his stomach gingerly. He could already feel it would bruise.

" _No changing the subject!"_ Yuya piped up, face a matching red with everyone. _"That's definitely not a thing friends do!"_

"It isn't?" he asked, surprised. "We slept together long before we got together though. Right, Rin?"

She nodded. _"Yeah, since we were kids."_

The others seemed to be having a hard time absorbing that fact, which Yugo found odd. Was it that hard to believe? They were so weird, seriously...

" _Anyway! Yugo, what are you even doing here, it's early in the morning!"_ Yuzu said, but her face turned blank as she properly looked at him. _"...And why are you wearing Rin's pyjamas?"_

He looked down at the clothes he had borrowed. "Rin gave it to me to sleep in," he said. Wasn't that an easy thing to understand?

" _He stayed over, because I asked."_ Rin sat down next to him on the bed.

" _But why didn't you just pull out the air mattress? There is one, right?"_ Ruri asked. Yuzu nodded. Well, Yugo didn't know that, but he didn't want to sleep on one if he could sleep with Rin on a real bed.

" _Why should I make him sleep on an air mattress when we could just share the bed? It's more comfortable that way."_

" _Yeah but,"_ Yuya flailed with his hands, eyes shifting around the room. _"even so-!"_

" _I think what all of you are getting so flustered about,"_ Yuri spoke up for the first time, once again floating a little ways away, looking bored, if a little flushed himself. _"is wheter these two did anything other than sleep yesterday night. Considering the wake up call we all got."_

The others got more flustered, but their lack of another answer told enough.

" _W-well if nothing happened it's fine! You didn't do anything right, Yugo, Rin?"_ Yuya asked, smile strained at the edges.

Yugo blushed, remembering his and Rin's... moment, just minutes ago. He looked away, scratching his cheek in embarrassment. "Well..."

" _Hey, Yugo don't tell me you two actually,"_ Yuto said, starting to look slightly alarmed.

"Not that! We didn't go that far!"

" _We kissed for a while, but nothing more."_ Rin said, looking calmer than Yugo currently felt. Her words did make the others go red in the face however.

"Right, nothing else!"

Rin ran her hand through her hair, looking a little embarrassed. _"It was more or less my fault anyway. I get more affectionate when I'm tired, kinda forgot about you guys completely."_

Yugo had to bite his lip to hold back a laugh at the expressions on the others faces, completely dumbfounded.

" _So, sorry about that, I guess."_ Rin turned away from the still silent group to look at him, face softening a little. _"Was it okay? I know it's been a while..."_

He looked at her in confusion for a second, until it clicked and he felt a blush cover his cheeks. "It's okay! Just got a little surprised. I l-liked it." He mumbled, scratching nervously at his cheek.

Rin let out a small relieved sigh and smiled at him, making his stomach flutter. _"That's good."_

"Don't go all mushy in front of us, please." Serena muttered, looking pointedly away.

" _Aww, but it's pretty cute,"_ Ruri said, giggling.

" _Anyway,"_ Yuzu spoke up, voice a bit squeaky. _"Kissing is still a no. Not like we were awake for it or anything, but..."_ she trailed off, mumbling to herself, before speaking up again. _"Waking up to you two being that close is a bit much! Let's not repeat that, ok?"_

" _Sharing a bed is a bit much so can we, not do that either?"_ Yuya said.

As everyone else nodded he and Rin shared an exasperated look. He could see the first part but not being able to sleep together made him feel a little miffed.

"Fine..." he said, Rin following suit after. He stretched his stiff limbs and let out a yawn, now noticing the gnawing in his stomach. "Man I'm hungry."

"Wanna get some breakfast?" He looks over in surprise as Rin stands up, back in control. "Wonder if Shuzo is awake."

" _Oh god, I forgot about dad! Listen here Rin, Yugo you definitely can't tell dad you slept in the same bed tonight, ok?"_ Yuzu said, looking frazzled and slightly panicky.

"Why?" he asked, confused.

" _Because he will definitely get the wrong idea! Anyway just don't mention it and we'll be fine!"_

"But what if he asks where Yugo slept?"

" _Hey, Yugo, did you tell mom we're staying here?"_ He turned to Yuya and tuned out Yuzu's anxious chattering.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I sent her a message last night. Don't know if she saw it though," he said, running a hand through his hair. He stood up and walked over to the desk and picked up the duel disk, only to pause.

"What's it say?" Rin asks, coming up behind him.

He showed her the screen, flustered smile on his face.

 _ **Mom: Is one of my sons getting lucky tonight? Just kidding, but make sure to be safe in anything you do. See you tomorrow!**_

Rin's loud laughter made the embarrassment and the wailing complaints from the others worth it.

* * *

Yugo let out a big yawn, tears gathering in the corner of his eyes, and stretched his stiff limbs from where he sat on the couch in the Sakaki living room.

"Getting sleepy?" he heard Rin whisper.

He looked over to where she sat beside him, rubbing away the tears. "Not really..."

They were sat among a pile of pillows and blankets, wearing pyjamas and watching movies. Well, it was them and their other counterparts, who were sprawled out over the furniture as best they could despite their lack of proper body and little actual mass. Yuzu sat next to Rin on the couch, Yuri on the floor on Yugo's side at the end of the couch. Yuya and Ruri were animatedly talking about the effects and costumes in the movie they were currently watching, Yuto and Serena at either side. He'd honestly forgotten what they were watching, some action movie about aliens and queens and sky skates.

Rin didn't look like she believed his obvious lie, but she didn't say anything else, just raised an eyebrow. He stuck out his tongue at her in response, making her snicker.

They'd been up for a few hours now, it was well past midnight and the room was dark, the TV's brightness lowered so it didn't hurt their eyes. The room was a little cold, but he was warm and comfy where he sat, surrounded by soft pillows and blankets. Plus, Rin was right beside him, and having her there made him feel safe.

He leaned against her side, letting out another yawn and made himself comfortable.

Rin gave an amused laugh and wrapped an arm around his shoulder. "Sure you shouldn't just go to bed? We can leave the TV on for the others," she whispered against his hair, breath ruffling the strands.

"'m fine," he mumbled. While he did want to sleep, he didn't want to cut his time with Rin any shorter. Hanging out in spirit form was different to hanging out in physical bodies. Cuddling was not possible, for example.

A cough came from beside them, but was ignored in favour of Rin running her fingers through his hair and him snuggling into her shoulder, mumbling in content. Her nails scratched softly against his scalp and made a pleasant shiver run down his spine.

When a second, more pointed 'ahem' came barely a minute later, he grudgingly opened his eyes and lazily lifted his head to see what it was.

He first saw Yuzu, who sat on the couch tense and glancing at them out of the corner of her eye, before averting them again. Her clasped hand was in front of her mouth, so he guessed she was the source of the noise.

"What, Yuzu?" he asked, sleepy tone in his voice undercut with slight annoyance at having his comfy spot disturbed.

She twitched, seemingly not counting on being addressed, before coughing and looking at them. Yugo realised her face was a little pink. "Do you mind...?"

Yugo blinked, not realising what she was reffering to. It was first when he glanced around and saw everyone else had tensed up, Yuya and Ruri's conversation having taken on a more nervous tone, volume a little higher than before, that he realised what she was talking about.

He frowned as Rin let out an irritated huff.

"Seriously?" she muttered, reluctantly removing her arm as he sat up and moved away. He noticed several shoulders drop as the tension left and a few let out big breaths. He thought he heard someone mumble 'oh thank god', which made him feel a little miffed.

Yugo sunk back against the couch, grabbed ahold of a pillow and curled up with it, pouting. He thought he could deal with not being overly affectionate with Rin for a while, but it was starting to get very frustrating. Forget sleeping in the same bed together, they couldn't even cuddle without at least one person getting all up in arms. Sleeping together on the couch was no good either.

Rin huffed next to him, crossing her arms and legs, frowning. He wanted to kiss her brow until the angry expression went away, but he knew if he tried the others would throw a fuss and it made him glower at the screen.

He hugged the pillow tighter to his chest to ward of his irritation. His side felt cold and he missed the nice weight of Rin's arm around him and her head leaning on top of his.

He hoped Zarc and Ray would hurry up and get better.

* * *

Talking with Zarc was weird. It wasn't really because they shared a face, Yugo had gotten over that idea long before even meeting the man. But it was a little weird looking at a face so similar ot his own, only older.

And Zarc just had this, aura around him. He seemed to have some control over it, when he was half-awake he could have this crushing precense that told you 'this person is dangerous', but it faded as he became more concious. Other times he just blinked blearily at you, as if checking you were actually talking to him. Even with bedhead and sleepy eyes with dark circles underneath, it felt like he was looking right through you and seeing things you didn't know was there.

Or something. Most of that came from others who had talked to Zarc.

Whenever Yugo had talked to the man, his eyes would almost soften, voice getting a little less rough. He had the same reaction to the other guys, expression becoming less hard whenever he looked at them. If he was awake and walking around the house, he would sometimes just sit and look at them if they were in the same room. It was a tad unnerving having those murky eyes fixated on them, unknown and complicated emotions flitting through them when they looked back.

Which lead Yugo to now, standing awkwardly in front of the bed Zarc spent most of his time in now, resting and healing up. The man was looking curiously at him, seemingly gauging what he would do next while also waiting for him to speak. That was another Zarc-thing, he would rarely speak first, waiting for the other party to explain what they wanted if they came to him. Yugo wasn't sure if it was because he was genuinely too tired to want to speak more than necessary or if he was that self-important.

"So," he said, fidgeting. "How's the recovery going?"

Zarc looked evenly at him, barely blinking. "Gradual. It's a long process, after all," he said, not breaking eye contact. "Why do you ask?"

"What, I can't ask just to check in on you?"

Golden eyes just looked at him, expression somehow becoming even more flat. "I know none of you are comfortable speaking to me, and I do not mind it. What I do mind, is people not being clear with their intentions. So spit it out."

Yugo laughed akwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. He knew that wouldn't work, but he tried. "Sorry. I'm just, getting a little impatient with this whole body-sharing thing. Wanted to know how long until we could be separated."

Zarc nodded slowly, not looking too surprised. "I figured it would be something along that vein. So, you four driving each other crazy in there? Or is it just you, since the other three aren't present at the moment?" he said, small smirk forming on his face and leaned his head on his hand.

"No! I mean yes. Uh kinda?" he fumbled with his words, trying to explain. Would he mind if he knew one of his parts and one part of Ray was dating? God he hoped the man wouldn't get angry.

Zarc looked blankly at him, before slowly lifting a hand and patting the bed, gesturing for him to sit down. Surprised, he carefully did, back a little straigther than normal.

"How 'bout going simple?"

Yugo nodded slowly. "Right, so, me and Rin are kinda together," he said, looking apprehensively at Zarc out of the corner of his eye. But he barely twitched. "Ok, go on."

He blinked, baffled. "You don't mind?"

"What? That you're together with one of Ray's pieces? No," he shook his head. "They're not Ray, and they have nothing to do with me. Go ahead and frolic with her if you wish."

He formed a small 'o' with his mouth in surprise. Zarc's mouth twitched in amusement at his silence. "I'm guessing that has to do with your impatience to split."

Yugo shaked his head to snap out of his daze. If he was okay with it all the better, but Yugo didn't know what to do with the relief that came with the man's words. It's not like he needed his blessing after all.

"Yes! I mean, I'm fine not doing anything that makes them too uncomfortable, we're all in the same boat here and all and I don't hate them so it works. But when I can't even lean on her shoulder or hug her without someone asking us to stop, I get irritated!" he said, voice raising in volume as his frustrations finally got an out.

"Hmm, I see," Zarc hummed, crossing his arms and leaning back against the headboard. "That does sound a bit overkill, however."

Yugo paused. "Huh?"

"Their reactions," Zarc specified. "Granted, seeing your own great likeness doing anything you find embarrassing is a challenge to ignore. Especially when you can't leave. But at worse, they can enter their soul rooms and not feel much, if anything at all, if all you two do is cuddle."

Yugo sat still, before frowning irritably. "So they ARE being difficult for no reason! I was fine with not k-kissing as much, but they flat out forbid that. They won't even let us hold hands in peace without squirming!"

"Wait, really?" Zarc looked a little surprised at that. "Huh... Well, sorry little one, I won't be well enough to separate you four for a while yet. I can already tell you're not ready just yet either, so you'll need to wait a bit longer," he said, actually looking slightly apologetic.

"No waaay..." Yugo whined, shoulders slumped. He didn't even register the weird way Zarc referred to him. "Uugh, this is the worst, Rin's been away for so long and yet I can't even hug her as I want," he mumbled, pouting.

"But," Yugo perked up, and looked at Zarc again, who had gained a toothy smirk. "that doesn't mean you can't get back at them _at least_ a little while you still have the chance, no?"

He tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I'll leave the specifics to you two, but it's a great chance getting payback when you're all together like this, so don't miss out on it."

Yugo was still confused, but he was interrupted from asking further at the sound of rumbling.

Zarc looked down at his stomach, hand held over it, unimpressed. A second joined soon after, and Yugo held both of his over his middle, blushing.

"Um, wanna get something to eat?" he asked, glancing up at him, embarrassed.

Zarc looked surprised, eyes widening a fraction, before smiling and nodding. "Yes, that would be nice."

* * *

"You know," Rin said, voice a little louder than usual, looking up at the blue sky. "I'm getting the feeling some people are now getting overly touchy with basic hand holding. Or is it just me?"

"Nah, it's not just you," Yugo says next to her in the same tone, lightly swinging their held hands back and forth as they walked down the street, a cloth bag filled with groceries in each of their other hands.

Rin could almost feel how the ghostie group behind them stiffened up and shrank back a little. _'Good'_ she tought, make them feel at least a little called out.

"Thank's for tagging along for shopping by the way."

"No problem. Is Yoko not home?"

"Went with Yusho to the XYZ Dimension, they won't be home until later."

"I see." It'd just be them then. The thought would probably have made Rin happier if 'just them' didn't also include six other people.

Really, Rin just wanted to go home and cuddle with Yugo on the couch for a few hours, seeing as the bed was complete off limits in any way. It's not like they would tear off each others clothes and do it if they were left alone in any potentially suggestive position for too long.

Rin didn't know how you immediately went from cuddling to fucking, but maybe she shouldn't expect otherwise from people who thought pecks on the cheek were too obscene.

What she really wanted to do, in the most simple way to explain it, was to lock herself and Yugo in a room and talk, nap and kiss for a whole day, had wanted to do that since they came back and reunited. Instead she had to walk on eggshells around easily flustered chickens and be satisfied with handholding and short hugs.

"I talked to Zarc a while ago."

Rin snaps out of her thougts at Yugo's voice, turning her head to look over to him, eyes still fixed on the sky above.

"Really? How did it go?"

"Well? It was a little weird, but he's not that bad."

"I can name at least one person who'd disagree," she said, snickering. Surprisingly she couldn't include Ray without some doubt. She hadn't talked much to the woman, as she was staying at LDS and that was a place neither her or the other girls wanted to visit unless necessary. Being in the same building as the same man who ordered her kidnapping made her skin crawl a little. "I'm guessing you asked when we could split?"

Yugo nodded, turning to look at her, pouting a little. "Yeah, he said it'll be a while, since neither him or us are well enough to do it yet."

She frowns. "I guessed as much, but still... He didn't say anything else?"

"He said something about getting payback while we were still like this, but I don't really get what he meant."

Rin ponders on that, as they reach the house and Yugo unlocks the door. She's still silently thinking as they put away the groceries they bought and when she absently wanders into the living room, stopping in the middle.

"You okay?" Yugo brushes against her shoulder as he walks up next to her, looking concerned. "You got all quiet suddenly."

"Just thinking, don't worry about it."

"When you say 'don't worry about it' it's a fifty-fifty chance it's something I should be worrying about with you, you know." Yugo gives her shirt a tug and she turns to look at him.

His hair is the most neat it's ever been, having been cut by an actual hairstylist a while ago and he'd spent the whole day staring at himself in the mirror and pulling his fingers through it, despite the style and look being the same. The use of nice shampoo and conditioner making it a little fluffier, a little softer to run her hands through, but still as messy as ever. His eyes a little less sunken in from eating properly, but he still hadn't put on much weight, she could still easily pick him up and carry him around. Even spending time in the sun he was still pale, skin the same fair colour like when they lived in the City. His eyes still had that beautiful crystal blue colour she had loved ever since they were kids, still shining and sparkling along with his emotions. His smile still made his whole face light up and it still made her heart skip a beat.

There were some small differences, but it was still the same Yugo she loved so, so much, enough to overwhelm her sometimes and make her breath catch in her throat. The same Yugo she had missed to the point it hurt when she was held captive, the same one she kept wishing she could hug, kiss and touch again.

He was right there, but because of some people's embarrassment issues, she was being pestered and bothered if she tried.

Maybe normally, she wouldn't mind this much, but annoyance and irritation kept adding up, coupled with being apart and worrying for his wellbeing, she was close to blowing up.

She was also feeling incredibly petty right now.

 _He said something about getting payback while we were still like this, but I don't really get what he meant_

"Yugo."

He perks up, having stood fidgeting but silent while she had stared at him, thinking. "What?"

"Can you play along with me for a little?"

He blinks in confusion. "Play along?"

"Been thinking about what Zarc said to you."

"Oh. You thought of a way to get payback?"

The corner of her lip tugs upwards. "Yup, is that okay?"

He nods, looking curious. "What do I need to do?"

She turns to face him properly, smiling. "You'll know, but just ignore the peanut gallery."

"Ookay?"

Rin took one of his hands in her own, soft in some places and rough in others. A beat passed, then another, and then she yanked at his hand to pull him up against her and mashed their lips together.

"Nnmf?! Yugo let out a surprised sound. As she moved her lips over his, he relaxed and kissed her back properly, free hand grabbing onto her shoulder. She wrapped her arm around his waist and opened her mouth slightly to brush her tongue against his lower lip, feeling him jump in her arms.

Yugo slowly opened his mouth, tongue shyly meeting hers as she entered and explored his mouth, wrapping both her arms around him tightly.

" _WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?!"_

Ah, there they are.

She felt Yugo tense up and go still as the others started shrieking at them to stop, but she wouldn't let them interrupt this time.

Rin tightened her hold on Yugo's waist, moving one hand further up his back, and dipped him backwards.

"Mnnn-!" he let's out a startled moan against her mouth, his arms flew around her neck, holding onto her tightly. His body was tense, but her hold was steady and she felt him gradually relax and melt in her arms as she tilted her head sligthly and continued to kiss his lips and lick the inside of his mouth.

She tuned out the screaming that now fluctuated in volume, focusing on Yugo's warmth, his smell, his soft lips and taste as the new angle let her explore his mouth in a new way. Her tongue caressed his as he let out little mewls and whimpers. Opening her eyes just a sliver, she saw his long eyelashes flutter against his cheeks.

His fingers treaded through her hair, making a pleasant shiver run down her spine. Her body felt incredibly warm as they continued to move their lips and tongues against each other, but she happily welcomed the warmth she had been wanting. She carefully raised a hand to tug and play with the hair at his neck and he let out a moan in return.

Not breaking their lipliock, she slowly stood up properly and pulled Yugo with her, limp body leaning into her.

She could have continued for hours, but air was a necessity, so she reluctantly pulled back, both of them breathing hard. Yugo's mouth was hanging open slightly as he panted, blushing bright crimson. Crystal blue eyes opened slightly, half-lidded and hazy as they looked right at her, like she was the most important thing in the world.

It made her want to swoop in and claim his lips again, let her hands explore as well, caressing his soft body under his clothes, push away the fabric and let her gaze and fingers roam over his bare skin, with nothing in the way. But she refrained.

" _Wh,"_

Rin twitched, having almost forgotten about the audience they had. Yugo blushed terribly as he to realised they weren't alone.

Their stunt had apparently rendered the others incapable of proper speech, those trying only managing a stutter. They were either turned away or slightly bent over, shaking as their bright red faces were frozen in either embarrassment or shock. More than a few hiding their faces behind their hands.

Yugo himself had buried his face in her shoulder, whining pitifully. She felt a bit bad, so she gave his hair a kiss as a half-assed apology for now.

" _What, was the point of that, exactly?"_ Serena manages to get out, scowling and baring her teeth at them.

Rin only grinned slyly, thumb rubbing circles in Yugo's shirt. "Retribution."

" _For what?!"_ Yuzu shrieks, eyes still glued to the floor and face hidden behind her hands.

She just raised an eyebrow, shifting to stand next to Yugo, but they still leaned against each other, her arm remaining wrapped around his waist. "For placing excessive restrictions on what we can or can't do and throwing a fit if we even slightly edge over your shrinking boundaries?"

An awkward silence followed. Yugo shifted his eyes nervously between her and the others, fingers fiddling with his shirt.

" _Well,"_ Yuto shifted, rubbing his arm.

" _When you put it that way, I guess but, wasn't that a bit much?"_ Yuya says, wringing his hands and looking mortified.

" _Yeah, you could have told us! Instead of doing t-that!"_ Yuzu says with her teeth gritted, fist shaking.

"We tried that. Right, Rin?"

"We did. Got shut down more often than not, or waved away as you fluttered around like flustered maidens at the thought of a long hug or apparently thinking sharing a bed would make you lose your virginity overnight." Yugo held back a surprised laugh at her words as the other girls flustered over her words.

" _We weren't THAT bad. Were we?"_ Ruri said, looking nervous.

Serena looked a bit put off by her word use. _"'Flustered maidens' sounds a bit much."_

"...Maybe I'm exaggerating a little, but not by much."

"Not like you guys were any better," Yugo says, looking annoyed, as the boys stopped their snickering abruptly. "You got sooo bothered at the thought of kissing or cuddling and would chew me out if we did anything like it."

"So much scolding," Rin huffed irritably. "Kinda annoying to deal with, when you've been apart and want to catch up and just, you know, be happy you're safely back together again." She stared pointedly at the others as they started to squirm.

" _...Ok, maybe we, went a little overboard?"_ Yuzu smiled hesitantly, playing with one of her pigtails.

"This coming from the loudest one with weird standards for what's acceptable," she muttered in a low voice, glancing away.

"Hey, Rin," Yugo said, frowning at her, "arguing won't help here."

Yuzu scowled, opening her mouth to argue until Yuya stepped between them, hands raised. _"Yugo's right! Let's talk about this calmly ok? That's obviously been a problem until now, let's go over some boundaries again and be more fair this time, yeah?"_

" _Sorry, you two,"_ Ruri said, looking apologetic. _"I didn't think too much about it on purpose, but I should have figured it would have bothered you this much..."_

"It's ok, Ruri! Don't be so down on yourself," Yugo said, grinning reassuringly at her, running a hand through his hair. "I mean, I get if it's weird for you guys, but it got a bit much with all the 'don't do that' and 'don't do this'. And the screaming."

"So much screaming." Rin gingerly rubbed her temple, feeling the phantom pain of headaches from the past. "Anyway, we don't need really need a crazy amount allowed, just a bit more leeway."

Yuzu continued to frown for a minute, before finally letting out a sigh. _"...Fine. Let's talk it through again."_

" _It did get a bit one-sided at one point,"_ Yuri mused, crossing his arms. _"I don't really mind, if you keep from being overly touchy until after we're separated. It's a bit much at times."_

Yugo's mouth forms a tiny smile. "I know."

Rin got the feeling something between them had happened while she wasn't looking. It was a bit weird, but not overly so.

" _But seriously, don't do that again. I thought I was gonna die,"_ Yuya said, holding his chest and sighing loudly.

She chuckled as Yugo blushed next to her. "Sure, if we actually get to kiss now, at least chaste types."

Yugo coughed to clear his throat. "And cuddle, I miss that."

"No fuss about holding hands, please."

Yuya scratched his head, thinking. _"I guess that's fine. How about you guys?"_

After some thinking the others gradually nodded.

" _That much should be fine,"_ Yuto says, despite still looking a little flustered.

Serena huffs. _"...Just that shouldn't be a big deal."_

It went surprisingly easy. Could they then possibly...?

Yugo seemed to have had the same thought as her. "Can we sleep in the same bed then?" he asked, sounding hopeful.

The resounding 'NO' made her both feel like laughing and sighing. She gripped Yugo's hand to try and gather energy for what she bet would be a long, tiring and embarrassing conversation.

* * *

FUCK me I did not expect this thing to get this long. It started as a silly idea that just spiraled into new ones that built up and I hope it turned out somewhat okay. I like it at least ^^;

If you liked it please leave a review! It'd make me really happy to know if you enjoyed it!


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